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Seattle Thunderbirds
Teams of the NLF Seattle Thunderbirds The Seattle Thunderbirds are another success story for Jim Tading and the NLF Board of Directors. When the NLF Candidacy Poll was released in January of 2013, Seattle wasn't on the original list of cities to be polled. In fact, to this day, no one is 100% sure how the NLF poll ended up in Seattle. Many theories have arisen over the years, but the NLF has never seen it neccesary to look into any of them. But one thing that Tading couldn't ignore, was the overall approval rating. At a time when the majority of small markets flat-out rejected the idea, Seattle stepped forward, sending an 89% overall approval rating back to the NLF Board of Directors. Looking over Seattle's resume, they weren't overly impressed. But Seattle wasn't the smallest market they were considering, and the 89% was in the top 10. Overall, Tading decided to try it anyway. Seattle fans were informed via newspaper on March 10, 2013, that an NLF team was coming to Seattle. Fans were beyond excited. The city of Seattle was never really mentioned much anymore, on a count of the fact that Seattle has had, and lost, a lot of sports teams before 2013. That was the risk the NLF was taking now. But, Seattle faithful refused to give the NLF any reason to retreat. The buzz spread fast throughout the state. Now, only two more tasks remained, finding an investor to act as Seattle's owner, and naming the team. The naming poll was released on March 17th of that year. Fans ultimately chose the Thunderbirds over the Sonics. They said it was a way to pay tribute to a very special tribe of Native Americans that live not too far away. Construction began in early April, but was delayed twice due to heavy rain in the area. Finally, on February 4, 2015, Qwest Field was complete. It was supposed to be finished before Christmas 2014, but Seattle mayor Ed Murray asked that Qwest Field's roof be made retractable, to prevent heavy rain damage to the AstroTurf. This process took nearly three extra months. Two days later, the team's owner was announced. It was announced that former Seattle governor James White would act as team owner. Three days before Seattle's inaugural game vs the Las Vegas Aces, the team;s HC/GM is announced as Nolan Harris, former OC to the Washington Nationals. Seattle won 21-10, and finished 9-6 in 2015. They followed that up with a 10-5 record in 2016, failing to make Division III Championship. In 2017, Harris was determined to land a stud with the #6 pick. He drafted WR Tony Chandler of Penn State. Seattle finished 10-5 again in 2017. This time making the Division III Title game. Seattle lost to Birmingham 23-10. The loss mad one thing clear, they needed a QB, and fast. He found his man at a Georgia Tech pro day. It came as no surprise that Seattle had traded up to the #2 spot, and drafted QB Chase Flynn of Georgia Tech. Seattle finished 9-6 in 2018, but fans were sure with Flynn guiding the offense, it wouldn't be long before Seattle advanced. Right they were, as Seattle finished 11-4 in 2019, and beat Honululu 38-17 to advance to Division II. However, things were about to get scary. In the 2020 season opener vs Arizona, QB Chase Flynn was leveled on a sack. He tore his Achilles tendon, and was lost for the rest of 2020. Seattle only managed to go 4-11 without Flynn, and were demoted back to Division III. In the 2021 offseason, Seattle had a chance to land BFL S Champ Floyd in Free Agency, but he signed with the Pittsburgh Armour instead. Entering 2021 with Floyd in rival-Pittsburgh was pretty tough for Seattle. Despite this, Seattle went 9-6 in 2021, and made the Division III Championshio vs Pittsburgh. Late in the game, Seattle lost when S Champ Floyd picked off QB Chase Flynn, and returned it for a 66-yd TD, ending the game for Seattle. In the 2022 Draft, Seattle took WR Dre Cooper with the #9 pick. And in the BFL Expansion Draft, grabbed S Austin Jones from New Orleans. Can Seattle overcome Division III in 2022? Chase Flynn, QB QB Chase Flynn is a very complicated guy. Coming out of Georgia Tech at only 20, many experts said his age alone could hold him back. But his impressive pro day at Georgia Tech caught the eye of Seattle coach Nolan Harris, who was convinced Flynn was NLF-ready despite his age. So he drafted Flynn with the 2nd pick of the 2018 Draft. Flynn had an up-and-down rookie season. But by the 2019 season, Flynn was ready to lead Seattle. And that he did. Seattle won Division III in 2019, and advanced into Division II. Entering 2020, Flynn was named *C* due to his leadership skills. But, on a late hit in the season opener, Flynn tore his Achilles tendon, and missed the 2020 season. Without their leader, Seattle went 4-11, and fell back into Division III. In 2021, Flynn led Seattle back to the Division III Championshp, but threw a late-game INT to Pittsburgh S Champ Floyd that ended Seattle's season. Now going into 2022, Flynn says Seattle is ready to advance again. Is Seattle good enough to advance?